Journal Abstracts

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The functional role of sex and pregnancy in transgenerational Satanic Cults is described and contrasted with its purpose in "normal" social groups. These observations are based on the reports of former Satanic cult members who are now being treated for some type of dissociative disorder. In "normal" social groups, the primary functions of sex and pregnancy center on perpetuating the gene pool of group members. In Satanic cults, however, the primary function of sex is to form a bond between some type of painful stimulation and physical pleasure.

During the 1960's, abdominal decompression during pregnancy was thought, on the basis of poorly controlled studies, to confer exceptional intelligence on the fetus. A carefully controlled study subsequently showed that this was not the case. Mothers who had received decompression treatment tended to give manifestly unrealistic accounts of their children's abilities, and their children differed temperamentally from the control group.

The following problems are the leading questions of our research project: (1) Can the influence of maternal emotions upon fetal behavior be established in the prenatal period, using real-time ultrasound echography and cardiography? (2) Is the prenatal influence, established in the prenatal period, reflected in the neonatal behavior? And can we find significant correlations between maternal emotions during pregnancy on the one hand and neonatal and infant behavior-e.g.

A number of studies have suggested that maternal detachment is common in tropical societies which suffer from high infant mortality. The author's own research revealed evidence of both detachment and positive affect. She suggests that maternal behavior in all societies can be best characterized as exhibiting maternal ambivalence.

The cosmologies of many cultures use gender as symbolic for polar attributes of human consciousness. The author presents a developmental neurobiological theory to account for the non-arbitrary way in which this attribution comes about, and applies the theory to an explanation of the symbolic use of gender in Tibetan tantric Buddhism. He concludes by discussing the implications of the theory for understanding the effects of positive and negative pre- and perinatal experiences upon the development of gender identity.

Though there is mounting demand by students for information about Pre- and Peri-Natal Psychology there is no such course being offered at a recognized university at this time. The authors, in an attempt to facilitate discussion on this subject and eventual implementation have prepared a course outline.

In psychology, traditional studies have sought the boundaries of memory in specific brain structures thought to mark the beginning and limits of memory.

Recent discoveries in neuroscience suggest new brain processes and chronologies relevant to memory. Advances in brain research and instrumentation have clarified some memory pathways and permitted direct observation of the living brain but these studies obscure the real boundaries of memory.

A constant reminder that babies come from women and nature, not from technology and culture, childbirth calls into question our attempts at technological dominance of nature, confronting American society with a series of conceptual dilemmas with practical, procedural ramifications: how to create a sense of cultural control over birth, a natural process resistant to such control? How to make a birth, a powerfully female phenomenon, reinforce, instead of undermine, the patriarchal system upon which American society is still based?

Psychology dates to the early part of the twentieth century in Yugoslavia, but developments in the science have been slow for a number of reasons. Lag in technological development and lack of financial support have been characteristic. Furthermore, sociocultural and economic differences between the regions have made an even development of pre- and perinatal psychological awareness impossible. There is now conflict between cultural values relative to pregnancy, the life of the fetus and abortion. Medical advances and social change have produced problems faster than they can be solved.

Research is presented based upon perceptual defence theory relating to the possibility of detecting the risk of postpartum depression in pregnant women. The authors develop a tachystoscopic method and report on a study using the method on a sample of 43 French Canadian women. The method involves testing identification and reaction times to photographic stimuli related to perinatal issues.